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Kitchen Storage & Stainless

Our kitchen is far from finished. Far. There is so much more for us to do—new cabinets, countertops, a wall of tile. Lots to do. But we are making progress!

First, a little back story: We are still using the circa 1976 cabinets that came with the house. It is thanks to our sweet neighbor Elaine that we know the exact vintage of our kitchen. Elaine tells us that the cabinets were the ones she installed in her own kitchen when she and her late husband built their home (in 1976). When she updated her kitchen more than 20 years ago, she got new cabinets and gave the old ones to Donna (the owner of our house). I have to admit, they ain’t pretty, but they have more than done the job for us! When we took down the wall between the kitchen and living room and moved the sink plumbing across the room, we hacked apart and reconfigured the boxes, literally sawing a big piece off the countertop to make it all work.

Our current update includes a few IKEA storage pieces to help clear some countertop space near the range. Here’s a before photo. Note the hacked (literally) countertop on the stack of drawers.

We ordered a stainless shelf to hold our spices and oils and a rack to hang high with extra-large S hooks to hold some of our cookware on the short return wall that is the only wall space between our kitchen and living room. Ben went to work figuring out how to anchor the pieces in the drywall that is topped with recycled corrugated tin panels from a neighbor’s barn.

And here’s the installed storage! Why am I always so thrilled with these simple, little changes that just generally make life easier? Such a tiny change but a huge impact!

Speaking of cabinets…I was at Lowe’s to meet with a kitchen designer and get an estimate on cabinets and countertops when I spied a couple of amazing deals on stainless appliances! I wasn’t planning on buying appliances now, but I know our poor freezer-on-top fridge (which had already been relegated to the basement as the beer fridge in the house I bought more than a decade ago) is likely not going to last too much longer.

And the glass-top electric range (also a relic that came with the house I bought more than a decade ago) is not exactly the perfect chef’s tool.

Lowe’s happened to be having a massive sale and I found a Frigidare gas range with a center griddle and convection oven for $300 off. And a Whirlpool armoire-style fridge (25+ cubic feet vs. our old 18 cubic fee of storage) for $700 off. And free delivery. As I type this I’m wondering why I had to go back to the store three more times before actually saying yes! But, I did. Measuring, pondering, asking a million questions. But I finally did it. And my receipt said “Today you saved: $1,000.” That, my friends, is a big win in my book!

And, as a bonus, having the delivery date for the appliances gave Ben a firm deadline for getting the flooring down all the way across the kitchen to the pantry door (which means the new range could sit on new floor). And…the floor officially marched all the way across the kitchen before the new range arrived!

The fridge (a good six inches taller and wider than our old model) cozies into our pantry, but because the door swing space is less, it actually works better for traffic flow.

Today we said goodbye to the old range. It is off to the Habitat for Humanity ReStore to find a new home…